Tuesday Tutorial

I will not be posting a tutorial by me this week and probably next week. We are getting ready to go on vacation and it has been a crazy week for us. I still have tons to do and not much time left to do it in. But I am going to provide ou with a little craft for you to work on if you have a camera w/ a strap that goes around your neck. I whipped one up today in less than an hour and it turned out adorable. I plan on making several more when I have a little more time. I did have to make some adjustments to the measurements for my strap as mine was a little bit shorter. I hope you have fun crafting!!

21 1/2 weeks

Another pregnant pic. NO comments on how big my belly is!!!

It is my 7th baby and really I have only gained a few pounds so far, my belly just knows exactly what to do!

Silly Girls!

This is what happens when you have 3 older sisters and your big brothers aren't around.

He is not crying because he has a Tinkerbell costume on (I would have taken it off!). He is crying because he didn't get a cupcake. Please excuse the messy background. We are getting ready for a trip and things are in the process of getting organized and packed.

Here is a pic. of my happy, mischievous boy! We sure love him lots and can't believe he's not going to be our baby anymore and YES I still refer to him as my baby.

The Kansas City Temple!

Let me first warn you that I have posted a TON of pictures! We had an awesome experience being able to see Moroni put on top of the temple.
Yes, it was freezing but, it was totally worth it.

Here was the first time we got to see the Angel Moroni. It brought tears to my eyes the spirit was so strong. It was really amazing to be that close.

Here he is being hoisted up by the crane.

I took pictures of the whole process as they hoisted him up to the top of the temple.

Here they lined him up with a hole in the spire to put the "pole" Moroni is attached to in the spire.

They slowly guided Moroni into the spire.

Here he is all the way in!

They unhooked the crane and there he is atop of our magnificent temple!

This is the only view I could get a picture of Moroni w/out equipment in the pictures.

Here is a picture of the temple as we were leaving. It is amazing how much work they have done since the last time we were here, which was just a month ago. I feel so blessed to have a temple being built so close to our home. It is just 30-40 minutes away. Compared to our 3-4 hour trips to St. Louis it will be a breeze to attend the temple. I can't wait for it to be finished!!

Tuesday Tutorial

Ribbon Sock Tutorial

Supplies: A pair of socks

2-3 inch ribbon

(I have 2 pictured because I was making two pairs, obviously ;))

I measure the ribbon out so that it is 2 times the width of the socks.

Cut your ribbon to that length.

Burn the edges of the ribbon so that they do not ravel.

So the ribbon edges together so that you have made the ribbon into a circle.

Pin the ribbon to your sock. I line the ribbon seam up with the back of the sock. Also, turn the sock inside out and make sure you pin the ribbon right side to the sock.

I pin the sock in 2 places, the back of the sock and then halfway around, as pictured below.

Start sewing at the back of the sock where your seam on your ribbon is. After you back stitch and the ribbon is attached about 1/2" I want you to start stretching the sock.

You want to stretch the sock out to the pin, this is what is going to cause the ribbon to ruffle.

Continue to stretch the sock all the way around. Make the sock stretch to the length of the ribbon.

This is what it will look like all sewn to the sock inside out.

Flip the sock right side out and this is what you should have!

Here are my socks all finished. I love these socks!! I used to by the white lacy ones but, my girls just wore them out so quickly; they are expensive and cheaply made. These socks last so much longer than those expensive ones.

I have done these in all sizes and it is the same technique. The newborn size can be a little tricky as they are so small. Have fun crafting!

BOY OR GIRL

Tonight we had a "gender party" and it was seriously fun!! My mom went w/ us to my ultrasound this morning at 10:30. May I say that my ultrasound tech was not a warm fuzzy kind of person. Anyways, we explained to her that we wanted to know the sex of the baby but, that we wanted her to just tell my mom. My mom had the job of making us a cake that would either be pink or blue. It was somewhat of a tricky thing for her to do considering my 14 year old sister was dieing to find out. We had dinner, then family night, and by the time that was over my kids were extremely anxious to find out if they would have a little brother or sister and frankly I was excited to cut into the cake too and see what this little sweetie was going to be. My mom made a beautiful cake, especially considering she had to do it covertly to keep my little sister from seeing. Let me just say we are extremely excited and I can't wait to do some shopping. Well, without further delay here is a pic of the wonderful cake and celebration we had...

Here are the votes for those who thought it would be a girl.

Here are the votes for those who thought it would be a boy. Peter voted both ways, he figured if someone was raising their hands he needed to be too!

Kids anxiously awaiting to see pink or blue. Peter seemed really excited practically ready to crawl on the table but, I can assure you it wasn't because he couldn't wait to find out if he had a little brother or sister. The boy loves chocolate, he couldn't wait to get his hands on a piece of the cake!

They saw the crumbs on the knife and started screaming and yelling "It's a boy, it's a boy!!!"

Russell happened to catch a picture of me leaning in to Noel, so that I can hear her over the celebrating and it was just in time for me to hear her say "Dang it!" Apparently she wanted a girl. It was so funny, considering she has wanted the baby to be a boy the entire time up until today. Silly girl!

Everyone enjoying their cake!

Nana and Grandad coming to see what color the cake is!

Last but not least the cake maker herself!

Boy or Girl??

That is the question!! We had our ultrasound today and the baby is just perfect. So, is it a boy or girl? Well, I don't know yet. My mom is the only one that knows and she will be revealing to us later on today what the baby is. The kids are really excited and so am I. I will post later w/ the sex of the baby!

Derek's Deployment

Today my brother left for his 400 day deployment to Afghanistan. My heart goes out to his wife and daughters as they are the ones who will be affected most by Derek being gone. We will be praying for him and his family, that he is kept safe and Sam can be blessed w/ extra patience :) and comfort. I can't imagine having to do the daily routine day in and out w/out my hubby, I have a lot of respect for Sam. I am grateful for the sacrifice they are making for our country!

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20 1/2 weeks

So this week I made my mom and sisters pose w/ me since we were all together.